Okay, I’m crack­ing up here. This guy’s claim is the oppo­site of Lake Wobe­gon, but just as math­e­mat­i­cally inept: he’s say­ing that 30% of Amer­i­cans are among the dumb­est 10% of Amer­i­cans. Not pos­si­ble, kids, not pos­si­ble. Basic pigeon­hole principle.

At most, 20% of the pop­u­la­tion can have an IQ that aver­ages in the bot­tom 10% of the pop­u­la­tion: every per­son with an IQ of 100 could be bal­anced out by some­one with an IQ of 60. Since IQs are dis­trib­uted on a bell curve, and less than 1% of peo­ple have an IQ of 60, you can only bal­ance them out with an equal num­ber of peo­ple who have an IQ of 100 to keep your aver­age at 80. (Imag­ine reflect­ing the left-​hand side of the bell curve over the aver­age, and you have the high­est num­ber of peo­ple who can have that aver­age IQ, and the ways that it is dis­trib­uted.) Ergo, even assum­ing that every sin­gle Fox News viewer were among the dumb­est in the nation, you can’t get more than 20% with an aver­age IQ of 80. Sorry, liberals!

I will fur­ther note that even a small num­ber of highly intel­li­gent Fox News view­ers will wreck havoc on the results (if the ‘aver­age’ were taken to mean ‘the mean’) — you need quite a few peo­ple with IQs in the low­est 10% to bal­ance out one Thomas Sow­ell, Wal­ter Williams, or Ann Coulter.

But keep remem­ber­ing, my con­ser­v­a­tive read­ers, we’re the dumb ones. Those who look at a “study” like this and pub­lish it on Yahoo News are smarter than those who can prove that said study results are math­e­mat­i­cally impos­si­ble. Turns out, the joke is on them.

Okay, I’m cracking up here. This guy’s claim is the opposite of Lake Wobegon, but just as mathematically inept: he’s saying that 30% of Americans are among the dumbest 10% of Americans. Not possible, kids, not possible. Basic pigeonhole principle.

At most, 20% of the population can have an IQ that averages in the bottom 10% of the population: every person with an IQ of 100 could be balanced out by someone with an IQ of 60. Since IQs are distributed on a bell curve, and less than 1% of people have an IQ of 60, you can only balance them out with an equal number of people who have an IQ of 100 to keep your average at 80. (Imagine reflecting the left-hand side of the bell curve over the average, and you have the highest number of people who can have that average IQ, and the ways that it is distributed.) Ergo, even assuming that every single Fox News viewer were among the dumbest in the nation, you can’t get more than 20% with an average IQ of 80. Sorry, liberals!

I will further note that even a small number of highly intelligent Fox News viewers will wreck havoc on the results (if the ‘average’ were taken to mean ‘the mean’) – you need quite a few people with IQs in the lowest 10% to balance out one Thomas Sowell, Walter Williams, or Ann Coulter.

But keep remembering, my conservative readers, we’re the dumb ones. Those who look at a “study” like this and publish it on Yahoo News are smarter than those who can prove that said study results are mathematically impossible. Turns out, the joke is on them.

A number of issues regarding IQ were brought up in the post; and based on the content; it appeared that the writer was unfamiliar with the basics. Those with an IQ of 60 are not “balanced out” by those with an IQ of 100. The other end of the curve; those at the top 1%; have an IQ of 140 or higher.

As I stated before; this Yahoo story is not credible.

However; a lack of flexibility in thinking is reflected in the conservative rhetoric. “…standing athwart history yelling stop” is not the motto of a flexible thinker. KWIM?

For studies about IQ and conservatism try Bright Minds and Dark Attitudes and Low-Effort Thought Promotes Political Conservatism.

Now I’d like to see your scholarly articles to back up that rant of yours about taxes and sluts.

The average IQ is 100 + or – 15. About half of the population has an IQ of 100. Seventy five per cent of the population is between 85 and 115. The opposite tail of the Bell curve from the 60s is balanced out by the 140s. The 100 IQ is right there at the peak of the curve.

Conservations by nature may be less flexible in their thinking. The openly admit to a preference for sameness and old ways. But this “study” sounds like nonsense. Yahoo should not have given it space; IMO.

Jeanne, my little genuis, we aren’t talking about the average IQ; we’re talking about the percent of the population with an IQ of 80 or below, which allows us to apply the pigeonhole principle to the claim made by Yahoo News.

If you are going to claim that conservatives are “less flexible” in their thinking, then please back yourself up with a reputable, peer-reviewed, non-laughable study. Also, compare to liberals, whose entire mantra these days seems to be “bigger government, pay for the consequences of sluts, more taxes, tax the rich, eat the rich.”

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